


Five Minutes

by fliick



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged Up, Cat Cafe, Fluff, M/M, lev is also mentioned, levyaku if u reeeeaally squint, they're only aged up a bit; kuroo is in college and kenma works full time, this is just a lotta fluff and cats, yaku's the mom friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-05 21:24:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20280046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fliick/pseuds/fliick
Summary: Kenma’s not a sociable person. He finds it hard to talk to people, moreso strangers, so it’s a wonder he found himself working in customer service. He always assumed he wouldn’t have to interact much with other people if it was a cat cafe, but it turns out that the cafe part requires social contact.or: kuroo shows up five minutes before closing time and kenma gets to know him





	Five Minutes

**Author's Note:**

> honESTLY? this fic had no business being as long as it became  
it was gonna just bit a smaller ficlet that i thought of because one night i was thinking ab cat cafes and funny names for them and cat-ffineated popped into my head but here we are  
i'm hoping i didn't write these two too ooc or anything; this is the first time i've written them and they've got a dynamic that i'm not super used to writing so!
> 
> also excuse any typos or strange wordings, as always, i wrote a good chunk of this at 2am lol

Kenma’s not a sociable person. He finds it hard to talk to people, moreso strangers, so it’s a wonder he found himself working in customer service. He always assumed he wouldn’t have to interact much with other people if it was a cat cafe, but it turns out that the cafe part requires social contact.

Luckily enough, most people that come in are only there for the cats and Kenma is typically able to avoid too much socializing aside from big adoption days. It helps that his manager, Yaku, gave him a shift near closing time when the cafe is virtually empty (save for all the cats).

Kenma tends to prefer the customers that come in, pay admission, maybe orders a cup of tea or a pastry, and then sits with the cats for the remainder of their time. And he tends to loathe the customers that are talkative or big groups of teens that loudly squeal over the cats or unattended children that cause trouble for the cats that Kenma’s forced to confront.

Not to mention Kenma finds the uniform ridiculous. The uniform consists of a wire headband with cat ears on it, an apron, and a clip-on cat tail. Not only is the outfit embarrassing to wear (though Yaku actually seems to pull it off fairly well…), the cats constantly swat at the tail when Kenma walks around the cafe.

Kenma gets to noticing regular customers as well. He doesn’t talk to them often, but there’s a tower of a man with gray hair and green eyes that comes in often to sit and play with the cats. He’s clumsy and Kenma thinks his legs are too long for his own good. The first time he came in, Kenma had to talk to him to tell him not to pull the cats’ tails or pick them up and dangle them.  
Customers like him tire Kenma out constantly.

Despite this, Kenma enjoys his job. For the most part, his shift is quiet and he’s left to close up so he gets to spend time with the cats once everything settles down and it’s close to closing time.  
He’s never had too many friends due to his withdrawn personality, so he considers the cats his friends. There’s a black cat that seems to favor him in particular, and Kenma had been considering adopting him for a while now. He’d been brainstorming names for weeks now, but nothing seems to fit well enough.

* * *

It’s five minutes until closing time when the bells above the door jingle and someone steps in. Kenma had been sitting on the couch, the black cat in his lap, winding down before he had to close up. He’s never had someone come in so close to the end of the day, so he’s not sure what to do other than watch as a tall man glances around before spotting Kenma.

The man has wild black hair, small hazel eyes, and a lazy grin when he looks over Kenma. He barks out a laugh before Kenma can say anything.

“Is that the uniform?” he chuckles, not bothering to hide his giggles. The first thing out of his mouth, and it’s not even a greeting.  
Kenma’s face heats up a bit. It really is a silly uniform, after all.  
Kenma just mutters back, “We’re closing soon.”  
The man raises his hands in defense. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to tease! It’s cute, really.”  
“No, we really are closing soon,” Kenma repeats, not quite meeting the man’s eyes.  
“Aw, are you kicking me out? I came all this way,” the guy says dramatically, shrugging his shoulders.

“The hours are on the door,” Kenma says, standing up as the black cat jumps out of his lap. “You should come back then.”  
“Hmmm,” the man hums, watching as Kenma walks back towards the counter. “You’re no fun, Kenma.”  
“Huh?” Kenma blinks, briefly confused as to how the man knows his name.  
He seems to catch Kenma’s confused look because he grins and taps the left part of his chest. Kenma remembers his name tag and mumbles a small, “Oh.”

“But fine, I’ll come back tomorrow,” the man turns resignedly, shaking his head. A cat saunters up to him, but he barely glances at it. “You’ll be here tomorrow, right?”  
Kenma raises an eyebrow, but nods. He doesn’t know why the guy would be wondering why _he_ would be here, when most people come for the cats.  
Before the man lets the door swing shut behind him, he calls, “Oh, right! I’m Tetsurou Kuroo! See ya, Kenma!”

Kuroo shows up at the exact same time the next day.  
“Kenma,” Kuroo greets when he walks in, an innocent smile on his face.  
Kenma frowns, furrowing his eyebrows. He crosses his arms and shifts his weight, but Kuroo only laughs in response.  
“What a face to make at a customer!”” Kuroo shakes his head. “I’m hurt.”

Kenma’s never had to work overtime, and he kind of doesn’t want to start now.  
“We’re closing soon,” Kenma says evenly. The black cat skirts around his legs, chasing a piece of fluff ripped out from out of the cat toys around the cafe, then getting distracted by the fake tail and batting at that instead.  
Kuroo smirks and replies, “I’ve still got five minutes, don’t I?”  
Kenma scowls, watching Kuroo as he makes his way across the room over to the counter.  
“Hey now, I’ll pay you for your overtime,” Kuroo says with a chuckle, reaching over to pat Kenma on the head.  
“That’s not the problem here,” Kenma grumbles, but still takes Kuroo’s admission fee money.

Instead of wandering around to the couch or the cat tree in the other room like Kenma expects he would, he stays in place at the counter, grinning.  
“Kenma, do you work here full time?” he asks, leaning an elbow on the counter.  
Kenma, caught up in his own confusion, stutters out a reply, “I- yes. I work here every day from two to closing time.”  
“You like it here? You seem like the cat type,” Kuroo says, turning his back to Kenma to lean against the counter. He looks over his shoulder at Kenma, that hyena-smirk stuck to his face.  
“I seem- what?” Kenma blinks, furrowing his eyebrows.

Kuroo waves a hand as he explains, “Oh, you know. You’re like, a reserved person. You get defensive easily, and despite working in customer service, you look like you’d rather be anywhere else the second a customer walks in.”  
“That’s…” Kenma starts, but he can’t think of a way to end a sentence that hadn’t even fully formed in his head. He elects to answer Kuroo’s first question instead, “I don’t mind working here. It’s quiet - _mostly_.”  
“Hey, don’t glare at me! According to the clock, there’s still two minutes left!” he then returns to the first part of Kenma’s answer, “You did seem pretty relaxed yesterday before I came in. The name’s funny too.”

Kenma tenses his shoulders. “I just hadn’t expected anyone to come in right when we were closing. Most people come during regular business hours... Wait, the name?”  
“Cat-ffineated. It’s funny,” Kuroo chuckles at the cafe’s name. He spins around to face Kenma again and points at him. “Ah, see. You do get defensive easily.”  
“I do not,” Kenma huffs, crossing his arms.  
“Do too,” Kuroo teases.  
“I do _not_.”  
“...Do too.”

* * *

Kuroo consistently comes into the cafe five minutes before closing time every day after that. He mostly just chats with Kenma in those five minutes, despite paying proper admission. Kenma’s not even sure if the guy likes cats or if he’s just goofing off, but somehow, his company is easier to handle than others.  
Kenma would normally find someone like him bothersome and try his best not to talk to him; he only ever comes in during the time Kenma usually uses to relax, he chatters nonstop with Kenma when he does come in, and he practically does nothing but tease Kenma.

But for some reason, Kenma gets used to seeing Kuroo show up at the end of the day. He had initially been annoyed, but now he almost feels like he’s seeing an old friend every time Kuroo walks through the door.  
It becomes a routine after a while. Kenma works his shift, and by the end of the day, he’s actually _waiting_ for Kuroo to show up.

He finds out a small bit about Kuroo as well. Kuroo plays college volleyball and studies biology. Kuroo lives in his own apartment not too far from the cafe, and had seen a flyer for the cafe and decided to visit on a whim. As Kenma had suspected, he’s not even really much of a cat person. He doesn’t mind cats, but he never really interacts with the cats when he visits, despite a calico taking a strong liking to him and following him all around the room.  
Kuroo doesn’t often talk much about himself and usually asks about Kenma, though. Even though Kenma’s a bit curious, he doesn’t really press for details.

Somewhere down the line of their routine, Kuroo had offered to help out around the cafe with the cats, despite not caring much for cats, and after getting the okay from Yaku, Kenma took up his offer, and Kuroo began showing up about fifteen minutes to closing time instead. He still pays admission, though, and Kenma wonders if he has a job that helps him pay to come in every day. But in truth, Kenma doesn’t really mind Kuroo coming in to hang out every day, though he’d never admit it out loud.

* * *

The bell above the door chimes. There’s no one in the cafe by now - it’s a weekday after all - so Kenma doesn’t bother looking up from where’s crouched on the floor, trying to get a cat to come out from under the couch to be brushed.

“Heya,” Kuroo calls as he steps in. There’s a pause, then, “Ah, there you are. Whatcha doing, Kenma?”  
“This white one’s hiding,” Kenma mumbles, reaching a hand delicately under the couch to try to coax it out. The cat hisses, so Kenma backs off with a huff, sitting up.  
“Lemme try,” Kuroo offers, stepping towards him, but Kenma shoos him off, shaking his head. “What?” Kuroo asks in mock offend.  
Kenma scowls at him as he stands up and walks over to the counter. “I think you scare the cats. Must be that mischievous smirk of yours,” he says before ducking behind the counter where the cat treats are.

Kuroo scoffs dramatically, flopping the back of his hand over his forehead. “That hurt, Kenma. My smile is always innocent with no ill intentions behind it. I’m not _that_ bad with them.”  
Kenma returns with a small cat treat, raising an eyebrow at Kuroo. “You got scratched the other day because you were petting the orange one’s fur backwards,” he points out as he wanders back to the couch.  
Kuroo shrugs. He turns to saunter into the cat tree room, where he does his daily cleaning, then calls back, “No sympathy for your favorite customer!”

In the fifteen minutes since Kuroo arrived, Kenma still hasn’t made any headway on the white cat. It only arches its back when Kenma brings his hand close to it, and it simply snatches the treat out of Kenma’s hand before returning to its spot.  
Kenma sits back on his haunches, frustrated. Kuroo’s been in the other room mostly, cleaning the cat tree and area of cat fur, but he had poked his head in the room intermittently to chat. It’s been about seven minutes since Kenma’s seen Kuroo, and he briefly wonders if the latter decided to go ahead and go home. He figures Kuroo would probably let him know, though.

Kenma’s ready to give up, but he gives one last effort, holding his hand out to the cat and smacking his lips together, making loud smooching sounds towards it as he beckons it, “Hey, come here.”  
Behind him, Kenma hears footsteps and Kuroo enters the room asking, “Yeah? What do you need?”  
Kenma looks at Kuroo over his shoulder, squinting incredulously, knitting his eyebrows together. Kuroo surveys the scene, realization flicks across his eyes, and his face actually gets a little red - a rare (and admittedly, amusing) sight.

“You were talking to the cat.”  
“I was talking to the cat,” Kenma confirms flatly.  
Kuroo buries his face in his hands, inhales deeply, and mumbles, “Don’t look at me like that. I’m the only other person here, how could I have known?”  
“Kuro, when have I ever called you like that?”  
“You never talk to the cats! Cut me some slack!”  
“_Why_ would I ever call you like that?”  
“You know, we’re closing soon. I’ll go grab the sign from outside.”

* * *

There’s a large crowd today. It’s an adoption day, so the cafe is busy as usual, but this particular group seems to be a bit more rowdy than other adoption day groups. The group consists mostly of teenagers, and they’re giving Kenma anxiety with how noisy they are, how they’re knocking over cat toys and cornering cats to pet them. They were here when Kenma began his shift, and they’re still lingering when Kuroo ambles into the cafe.

“Heya,” Kuroo calls, but stops as he notices the crowd. He eyes them up, then wanders over to the counter where Kenma stands stiffly. “Weird to see people actually in here,” he chuckles as he approaches.  
Kenma just groans quietly, watching as a teen holds up a very visibly uncomfortable cat up while her friend takes a picture.  
“It’s almost closing time, they’ll probably leave soon,” Kuroo shrugs, leaning against the counter.

“Excuse me,” a lanky teen approaches the counter. Judging by the tone of his voice, Kenma can already see where this is going. “One of your cats scratched me.”  
Kenma’s throat is dry as he replies, “Sorry… They usually aren’t very aggressive.”  
The teen scoffs, holding out his hand. “I wasn’t provoking it, if that’s what you’re assuming,” he says over-defensively. The scratch on his hand hadn’t broken skin, it’s just a bit red.  
“Well, that’s usually the only reason they scratch…” Kenma trails off into mumbles, fiddling his fingers.

“Look, I didn’t do anything to the stupid thing. Just give me a refund and I’ll leave you alone,” the teen says, taking a step closer to the counter, but Kuroo’s standing in the way. He shoots a glare at Kuroo, but Kuroo only yawns at him.  
“You sure are making a fuss over nothing,” Kuroo waves a hand dismissively. “It’s just a tiny scratch, and it’s clearly your fault you got scratched.”  
The teen scoffs again, gearing up to say something, but Kuroo beats him to it.  
“Anyway, we’re closing, so pack it up,” Kuroo says lowly - almost threateningly.  
“Well, you just lost a customer. I won’t be coming back here,” the teen huffs smugly, crossing his arms.  
Kuroo wrinkles his nose at the teen, scowling at him. “Good riddance, then.”

“Kuro,” Kenma starts, worried Kuroo might try to pick a fight with the guy if he isn’t stopped, but the teen just stomps off, cursing under his breath.  
“Teens sure are carefree, huh?” Kuroo says to Kenma, his regular smirk back on his face.  
“I thought you might try to jump him for a second,” Kenma admits, relaxing his shoulders.  
Kuroo barks out a laugh. “I’m not that reckless. I just wanted to get him out of your hair, I’m not looking to get kicked out or anything,” he says.  
They watch as the group leaves, chatting amongst themselves. None of the teens actually adopt any of the cats.

Once the group leaves, Kuroo stretches his arms above his head, yawning again.  
“Want me to get started on the cat tree?” he asks, glancing down at Kenma.  
Kenma pauses for a moment. He wonders what he would have done had Kuroo not been here. He probably would have just given the teen a refund, actually. Kenma’s never been good with confrontation; he’d been lucky enough that he hasn’t often come across many difficult customers, but Yaku’s warned him about them before.

Kuroo’s already heading into the other room when Kenma calls out to him.  
“Hey, Kuro,” he begins, and Kuroo spins around to face him. “Thanks…” Kenma mumbles under his breath.  
For a moment, he’s not sure Kuroo even heard him, but Kuroo grins, throws him a thumbs up, and disappears into the other room.

* * *

One day, Kuroo doesn’t come in.

Every once in a blue moon, Kuroo had been late to coming in, saying he had a deadline for a project, or that his practice ran late, but he’s never just… not come in.  
Kenma sits on the couch, five minutes till closing time, the black cat in his lap, trying not to worry too much. He’s aware that Kuroo has a busy college life outside of hanging out with Kenma at the cafe, so surely he’s just busy today.

He’s not really supposed to be on his phone during work, but Kenma still takes out his phone to re-check the time for the fifth time. To try to pass the time, he swipes around his home screen full of app games. He’s tempted to play one, but he knows if Yaku ever caught him on his phone during work, he’d get scolded big time.

Kenma realizes he’s never exchanged phone numbers with Kuroo, despite hanging out with him every day for the past two and a half months. He makes a mental note to get Kuroo’s number next time he sees him, just in case.

Kenma’s picking up the chalkboard sign outside to bring it in when Kuroo sprints up to him, panting and keeling over as Kenma spins around to face him.  
“Kuro,” Kenma greets awkwardly, hands gripping the sign tightly. There’s something wrong with the way Kuroo’s holding himself, but Kenma can’t quite tell why yet.

After regaining his breath, Kuroo stands up to face Kenma. “Hey, sorry I’m so late,” he says out of breath, taking a step forward but stumbling horribly.  
Kenma sucks in a gasp, dropping the sign and reaching forward to help just as Kuroo catches himself before he crashes to the ground. Instead, the chalkboard sign clatters loudly on the sidewalk, but Kenma pays it no mind and just keeps his eyes on Kuroo.

“Ah, shit,” Kuroo hisses, strained. He regains his footing, but he’s holding his knee, biting his lip.  
“...Are you okay?” Kenma asks quietly, wondering if he should step forward to help support Kuroo. His knee obviously hurts, and he suppresses the urge to lecture Kuroo about running here if his knee is in bad shape.  
“Yeah, I just-” Kuroo sucks in another pained breath, “Lemme sit down for a sec.”

Kenma helps him into the cafe and over to the couch against the window. Kenma dips out to collect the chalkboard sign off the sidewalk before he stands in front of Kuroo, wondering if he should reach out and reassure him or something.

“Ugh, sorry,” Kuroo grunts, massaging his knee roughly, “I pulled a muscle pretty bad during practice today. Had to stop by the doctor’s before I came here, that’s why I was late.”  
Kenma shakes his head. “You should have just rested. You didn’t have to come in if you were hurt,” he says softly, fidgeting with the hem of the pocket of his apron.  
Kuroo slips on his regular smirk as he replies, “Nah, I’m fine. Just a little sore, that’s all.”  
But his knuckles grip his knee too hard as he rubs it, his eyes are sharper, and despite his tone, there’s strained frustration in his voice that Kenma can pick out.

Without thinking, Kenma kneels down on the floor in front of him and takes Kuroo’s knee in his hands, carefully kneading it himself. Kuroo freezes, lets his own hands be brushed away by Kenma’s.  
“Your face and body language says you’re pissed,” Kenma mutters definitively, focusing his attention from Kuroo’s face to his leg. “Relax your muscles, Kuro,” he adds, tapping Kuroo’s tensed thigh.  
After a brief moment, he does and his leg goes slack in Kenma’s hands.

“You shouldn’t push yourself. It’s not like you work here, you’re not required to show up,” Kenma mumbles as he presses his thumb gently against Kuroo’s knee.  
Kuroo leans back on the couch, sighing. “Well, I would have felt bad if I had left you hanging,” he says nonchalantly, grunting when Kenma accidentally presses a bit too hard.  
“It’s not that big of a deal…” Kenma murmurs, but somehow, he’s happy that Kuroo had been thinking of him despite his injury.

Kuroo relaxes into the massage, tipping his head back and closing his eyes as a cat jumps up on the couch to survey him. It’s the calico that’s constantly following him around. It perches itself on the windowsill behind the couch next to Kuroo’s head, and cozies up against Kuroo’s neck.

“Ah, by the way,” Kenma begins, glancing up at Kuroo.  
Kuroo doesn’t move or open his eyes, but he hums in acknowledgement.  
“It might help to exchange phone numbers in case something like this happens again,” Kenma says softly, suddenly feeling awkward about asking. “Just so you won’t have to come all this way just to tell me you got hurt.”  
Kuroo breathes a deep chuckle and opens his eyes to gaze down at Kenma, flashing him a grin.  
“Very smooth,” he muses. “I don’t mind, but you do know that I’m not coming here out of obligation or anything, right?”

Kenma doesn’t answer, just squeezes Kuroo’s knee softly. Somewhere in the back of his head, he’s sure he already knew it, but hearing Kuroo say it out loud feels embarrassing. He lowers his head, trying to hide the heat on his face with his long bangs.

Kuroo chuckles slyly. “Did that embarrass you?” he taunts.  
Kenma presses his knee a little roughly, causing him to jump a bit in pain.  
“You’re ruthless, Kenma.”

* * *

By the second month, Yaku decides to stay after hours one day with Kenma. Kenma’s only a little nervous of what he’s planning on doing, but he figures the worst he could do is tell Kuroo they don’t need his help anymore.

When Kuroo walks in and greets his usual, “Heya!” he freezes when he sees Yaku.  
Yaku and Kuroo have only met a few times, from what Kenma can remember.

The first time was when Yaku suggested Kuroo help out around the cafe voluntarily. Kenma had mentioned Kuroo to Yaku a couple times after he started showing up. For the most part, it had mostly been complaining, but Yaku finally crossed his arms and said, “If he’s going to keep showing up, why doesn’t he just help out?”  
Despite suggesting that Kuroo help out, Yaku was pretty adamant that Kuroo was only doing volunteer work and wouldn’t be paid.

The next day, Yaku met Kuroo and hesitantly affirmed that Kuroo was fit enough to help out. Kuroo had told Yaku that he was surprised Yaku was so short, to which Yaku had kicked him in the shins.

The second time was one of the big adoption days, when Cat-ffineated was celebrating its third year of adoptions and Yaku, as well as Kenma’s other co-workers stayed to hang out. One of Kenma’s co-workers, Taketora, had joked about Kuroo being an “honorary co-worker”, to which Yaku frowned and coldly replied, “Ony workers get paid, and he’s not getting paid, so he’s not a co-worker.”  
Kuroo had dramatically flopped over the counter as he said, “How mean. With Yaku-san’s height, I feel like my middle school bully is bullying me all over again!”  
Yaku had left a bump on Kuroo’s head by the end of the day.

From what Kenma can tell, Yaku doesn’t mind Kuroo for the most part, but the two seem to clash more often than not. Kuroo just loves teasing him and Yaku rarely has any of it.  
So Kenma’s tense when Yaku waves a hand at Kuroo.

“Well, this is a surprise. I didn’t expect to see Lil’ Yaku-san here!” Kuroo chirps as he walks over to the counter with his signature smirk.  
Yaku shoots him a glare as he hisses, “Learn to keep your mouth shut, Kuroo. Especially since I’m going to be your manager from here on out.”

Kuroo blinks, grin still on his face, then glances at Kenma. Kenma’s just as surprised, shaking his head at Kuroo to signal that he doesn’t know what’s going on.  
Kuroo spins around and mumbles, “Wait, wait, wait. Let me come in again, I think I missed something.”  
Before Kuroo can leave, Yaku shouts, “I’m giving you a job here, jerk!”

Kuroo flips back to look over Yaku and Kenma, then points at Kenma.  
“Did you ask him, Kenma?” he asks, bewildered.  
Kenma shakes his head again. “I didn’t know he was going to offer…” he says, then turns to Yaku. “I thought you didn’t want Kuro to work here?”

Yaku crosses his arms, looking over Kuroo. He inhales deeply, like he’s sucking up his pride.  
“You seem to work well with Kenma. Kenma’s a bit awkward around the other workers, so it’s lucky to find someone he meshes well with. I’d kind of hate it if you found some other job and didn’t come around to keep poor Kenma company, so I’m hiring you,” Yaku says with finality.  
“Yaku, I think you’re worrying about me too much…” Kenma mumbles.

Kuroo pauses for a moment, as if waiting for Yaku to tell him he’s joking or something. But then he laughs, and his grin slips back on his face.  
“I would hate it too if I couldn’t keep Kenma company, too!” Kuroo says, giving Yaku a thumbs up.  
Yaku smiles, nodding, seemingly satisfied with that.  
Kenma mutters, “Honestly, you two…”

“So!” Yaku begins as he dips back into the back room of the cafe. He returns with the cafe’s apron in his arms, as well as the wire headband and a fake black cat tail. “Your uniform.”  
Kuroo looks down at the outfit, then quickly says, “W-well, it’s fine if I just wear the apron, right? I mean, I’m just cleaning mostly, so I don’t really need-”  
“You said it was cute before, didn’t you, Kuro?” Kenma presses, giving Kuroo a cold stare.

Kuroo smile weakly and stammers, “I-It is cute! But like, on you guys!” He says in a weak pleading voice, “Please, I have a reputation.”

Kuroo clocks in with Kenma at exactly 2 PM in his uniform.

* * *

“You know Lev?” Kuroo suddenly asks as they’re sitting in a booth at a ramen restaurant.  
They’ve been going to eat together after work for a while now - Kenma doesn’t really remember when it started. Kuroo must have suggested it one day and it just became routine after that.

“Lev?” Kenma echoes, taking his chopsticks.  
“The tall beanpole with gray hair that comes in all the time,” Kuroo describes as he blows on his steaming ramen.  
“Ah. What about him?”  
“Yaku-san told me the other day that he had to get onto him for teasing one of the cats too much,” Kuroo hums, slurping loudly, then hanging his tongue out and grumbling, “Ugh, too hot.”  
Kenma blows on his own ramen as he replies, “He’s been causing trouble since he started coming. I had to tell him how to treat the cats too, when he first came in. I doubt this is the first time Yaku’s gotten onto him, either.”

Kuro chuckles. “Yaku-san talks about him all the time, though. He apparently started coming in more and more when Yaku-san’s around, and it’s annoying him,” he says as he tries his noodles again.  
“I don’t know how Yaku’s able to handle customers like him. They’re so tiring…” Kenma sighs, slurping his own ramen.  
“He’s pretty resilient, I’ll give him that,” Kuroo agrees.

They’re walking together after they eat, street lights flickering on as they walk along the sidewalk. Kuroo’s apartment is only a couple blocks from the cafe, and Kenma’s own apartment is on the way, so they often walk together after eating.  
It’s dark by now, and there’s a chill in the air that makes Kenma shudder; he always hates how cold it gets in the winter.  
“C’mere, Kenma,” Kuroo offers, opening up his jacket.  
Kenma complies without hesitation, snuggling into Kuroo’s jacket as Kuroo slings an arm around Kenma’s shoulders.

Kenma’s not sure when they became so physically affectionate, but he doesn’t complain. He’s always been a bit anxious about being touched by others, but when Kuroo does it, he doesn’t really mind. Kuroo’s always careful and gentle with his touches, like knocking knees when they sit together on the couch in the cafe, or when their shoulder bump as they’re walking, or like now, as Kuroo holds Kenma close to him while Kenma clings to Kuroo’s side.

So when one night, Kuroo’s walking behind Kenma, his hands in Kenma’s jacket pockets closed around Kenma’s hands, slumped over Kenma’s back, Kenma doesn’t complain. It’s not awkward or weird, it’s just cozy.

“Kenma, I like you,” Kuroo murmurs into Kenma’s hair.  
It’s out of the blue and quick and simple and not at all like it happens in romance movies, and Kenma has to stop walking to fully take it in. It’s surprising, but it’s somehow not _as_ surprising as Kenma would have thought it would be. Kenma’s always been a keen person, so somewhere in the back of his head, he sort of felt like he knew about it. All their little touches, how comfortable Kenma is around Kuroo, it just feels natural.  
It’s still enough to get Kenma’s face hot and his heart beating, though, and he thinks he can maybe feel Kuroo’s heart racing against his back, too.

“Y-yeahmetoo,” Kenma mumbles quickly, hiding his face in his bangs.  
Kuroo slides off Kenma’s back and takes his hands out of Kenma’s pockets, and Kenma instantly misses the warmth. Kuroo walks around him to face him, leaning his head down to try to look in Kenma’s face.  
“Sorry, I didn’t hear that?” He says, and Kenma thinks he can hear a teasing tone in his voice.  
“M-metoo,” Kenma says even quieter, tilting his head down, away from Kuroo’s view.

Kuroo’s leaning down further to try to catch Kenma’s eye, but Kenma does his best to avoid it. Now Kenma’s sure of the smirk on his face.  
“Can you speak up, Kenma? I don’t think I caught that,” Kuroo pries again.  
Kenma covers his face with his hands as he turns his head up to look at Kuroo. His face still feels hot, and he’s sure it’s completely red.  
“I like you too,” he says slowly, glaring at Kuroo’s grin.

Kuroo steps forward and hugs him; opens his jacket up to wrap Kenma in as well. Kenma buries himself into it, nuzzling his face into Kuroo’s shoulder, encasing his arms around Kuroo’s torso.  
“You’re so cheesy,” Kenma grumbles.  
Kuroo chuckles. “You’re so cute,” he replies, squeezing his arms around Kenma.  
“It’s cold.”  
“Alright, alright, let’s get home. Gimme your hand.”

* * *

“That black cat sure likes you,” Kuroo observes from the counter.  
It’s five minutes to closing time, and Kenma’s sitting on the couch with the black cat, who purrs happily in his lap. It blinks its eyes slowly as Kenma scratches it behind the ears.  
“He’s been hanging around me since I started working here,” Kenma says quietly.  
“Thought about adopting it?” Kuroo asks, propping his chin up with a hand.  
Kenma nods. “I don’t know what to name him, though,” he says.

“How about something cool? Like Shadow, or Midnight?” Kuroo suggests.  
Kenma considers them, then replies, “Nah. It doesn’t quite suit him.”  
“Fluffy? Blacky?”  
“Too generic.”  
“You sure are picky, Kenma…”  
Kenma pouts at Kuroo. “I just want to give him a good name,” he huffs, leaning back against the couch. The sun’s setting by now, and it’s casting an orange glow through the big picture window the couch sits in front of. Spring is right around the corner, but it’s still cold out. The sun shines warmly against him though, and it’s making him sleepy.

He watches as Kuroo stands up, stretches his arms over his head, then takes off the wire headband, apron, and clip-on tail and sets it on the counter as he steps out from behind it.  
Kuroo’s been working at Cat-ffineated for almost five months, and has gotten into the routine of taking off his uniform around the same time. Kenma’s surprised he’s gotten away with it for as long as he has; he’s sure Yaku would give him an earful if he was ever caught.

Kuroo walks around the counter, crosses the room, and takes a seat next to Kenma. Kenma glances down and catches a glimpse of the supporter around his knee.  
“Your knee isn’t healed up yet?” he asks softly, looking up to Kuroo’s face.  
Kuroo looks down at his knee as he replies, “Oh, yeah. Well, it was, but I had a bit of a relapse some time ago. It’s fine right now, it only really hurts if I overdo it.”  
“Have you?”  
“Hm?”  
“Been overdoing it?”

Kuroo freezes for a split second, then chuckles weakly. “Oh… no, it’s been fine…”  
Kenma just fixes him with a hard stare.  
Kuroo sinks down into the couch so that the back of his neck leans against the back of the couch. The sudden movement stirs the cat slightly, but it relaxes into Kenma’s soothing petting just as quickly.

“I know you get frustrated about injuries, but if you don’t let it heal, you won’t be able to play at all,” Kenma chastises. “Just focus on getting better, don’t overwork yourself.”  
“I know, I know,” Kuroo sighs, closing his eyes.  
Kenma watches him for a moment, and he looks so peaceful, like a cat in a sunbeam. It makes Kenma sleepier just looking at him.

“Hey Kenma,” Kuroo murmurs, eyes still closed.  
“Mm?” Kenma hums back, watching Kuroo’s chest rise and fall evenly.  
There’s a pause, and Kenma briefly wonders if he dozed off already, but he stirs a bit, shifting his shoulders a bit to find a more comfortable position and folding his hands across his stomach.  
“I’m glad we met,” Kuroo says softly.

It throws Kenma off guard for a moment, and his face feels warm, though he just excuses it with the sunlight that’s shining on his face. Still, it makes him feel all warm and cozy inside, like he’s just wrapped himself in a blanket. It’s so affectionate, the way Kuroo says it, and it’s so cheesy and so _Kuroo_, and it makes Kenma extremely giddy, though he doesn’t let it show.

“You make it sound like you’re about to die or something,” Kenma mumbles as he leans over.  
“Nope. Just happy,” Kuroo purrs. He jolts slightly when Kenma tips forward and pecks him on the lips. He opens his eyes just as Kenma’s flopping his head onto Kuroo’s shoulder.  
“You okay?” Kuroo asks, bewildered. Kuroo’s usually the one initiating kisses, after all, but Kenma never shies away from them when he does.  
“Mm,” Kenma hums, “Just happy.”

* * *

Kenma adopts and names the cat Kuro.

**Author's Note:**

> kuroken makes me soft honestly, they're just really precious  
i meant to get this fic done earlier but i'm still thinking about semishira oops  
anyway! the start of a big project will be uploaded on haikyuu!! day! :D please look forward to it!
> 
> >[follow my tumblr and come chat!](https://fliicke.tumblr.com/)  
>[follow my twitter, where i sometimes post wip snippets!](https://twitter.com/fliicke)


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